Bunka Shutter Raises Estimate for Solar Product Sales

Bunka Shutter Co Ltd announced results for the first half of the fiscal year ending in March 2014 and forecasts for the full fiscal year.

Bunka Shutter sells mounting system products made of aluminum and other products for small-scale solar power generation systems and mega-solar (large-scale solar) power plants.

Sales of the company's solar power generation-related business came to ¥460 million (approx US$4.5 million) for the first half of the fiscal year, which was even higher than the previous sales forecast for the full year. The full-year sales forecast was raised to ¥650 million, an increase of ¥500 million on a year-over-year basis.

The amount of orders to be received in the full fiscal year is forecast to be ¥850 million, an increase of ¥400 million on a year-over-year basis. The amount of capital invested in the solar power generation-related business is expected to be ¥287 million for the full fiscal year.

Bunka Shutter intends to expand the solar power generation-related business, planning to expand its marketing area (currently the Kanto region) to include the Chubu, Kansai, Kyushu and Tohoku regions of Japan. Also, the company started to install mega-solar facilities by using unused lands owned by companies affiliated with Bunka Shutter.

For example, Bunka Shutter installed 1.512MW of solar panels on the roof of its Kakegawa Plant in collaboration with Cenergy Co (Naka Ward, Nagoya City). And the company is currently installing or building solar power generation systems at its Kakegawa Plant Life-in Center and on its unused lands in Kashiwazaki City, Niigata Prefecture, and Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture.

By installing solar power generation systems on its property, the company plans to research the characteristics of the regions and the conditions for installing such systems at buildings and acquire know-how.